Locomotive stoker



March 1934- c. J. suRDYKowsKi LOCOMOTIVE STOKER Filed July 25, 1931 Patented Mar. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES LOCOMOTIVE STOKER Charles J. Surdykowski, Tuckahoe, N. Y.; said Surdykowski now by judicial change of name Charles J. Surdy, assignor to Standard Stoker Company, Inc., a corporation of Delaware Application July 25, 1931, Serial No. 553,141

10 Claims. (01.,198-15) My invention relates to locomotive stokers of the scatter feed type and more particularly to those types in which a series of screw sections are employed for conveying fuel from the tender into the firebox of the locomotive through the lower portion of the firing opening.

In stokers of this type, it has been usual to provide flexibly related conduits with a screw in each of the conduits for conveying fuel to a point of distribution. The screws of these conduits being connected by universal joints at the point where the conduits are flexibly joined to provide for the necessary articulation between the locomotive and tender.

It is the object of this invention to provide a stoker wherein the universal joint connections between the screw sections are wholly without the conduits whereby the universal joints are more accessible for the purpose of lubrication and repairs and also to permit the locomotive and tender units of the stoker to be more readily separated at times when the coupling gear between the'locomotive and tender is inspected.

A further object of this invention is to provide a stoker having its conveying screw sections connected by universal joints without the stoker conduits and in which stoker a minimum number of parts are employed which are arranged to permit free passage of fuel from the tender to the locomotive firebox.

These and other objects of this invention will readily present themselves when the following specification is read in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a centralvertical longitudinal section of a portion of the locomotive and. tender showing the invention in section and partly in elevation; and Figure 2 is a fragmentary view showing a modification of the form of the invention disclosed in Figure 1. I On the drawing, A represents the locomotive, B its tender and C the coupling gear therebetween. The locomotive is provided with a firebox 10, a backwall 11 and the grates 12. A firing opening is shown at 13, the upper portion of which is closed by the firedoor 14 while the lower portion of said firing opening is arranged to receive the discharge opening of a stoker, generally indicated by the numeral 15.

The stoker 15 comprises a fuel transfer conduit 16 flexibly mounted beneath the floor 17 of the tender B and a riser conduit 18 rigidly secured to the locomotive. The riser conduit 18 discharges fuel onto a deflecting plate 19 from which the fuel is distributed over the grates by the action of a pressure fluid head 20 located at the rear of said deflecting plate.

The transfer conduit 16 receives fuel from the bin 21 through an elongated opening 22 in the floor 17 of the tender, said opening being controlled by the slidable plates 23. A screw 24 in the transfer conduit 16 conveys the fuel received thereby to the riser conduit 13 which is provided with a screw 25 for advancing'the fuel forwardly and upwardly onto said deflecting plate 19.

The forward end of the transfer conduit 16 is provided with a flange 26 to which is detachably secured a nozzle 2'7 which extends forwardly and is slightly curved upwardly. The forward portion of said nozzle being in flexible relation with the riser conduit 18 as at 28. The screw 24 extends forwardly beyond the flange 26 and its shaft portion 29 passes through the wall 30 of said nozzle 27 where it is journaled in the bearing 31. The forward portion of said screw 24 being tapered as at 32 to conform with the slightly curved wall 30 of said nozzle.

The screw 25 of the riser conduit 18 has its shaft portion 33 extending rearwardly and downwardly to pass through the journal 34. The projecting shafts 29 and 33 of the screws 24 and 25 receive the jaw members 35 and 36 respectively which are connected by the link 37, thereby connecting the screw'sections by a universal joint to provide for the movement between the trough 16 andthe riser 17. Q r

The universally connected screw sections 24 and 25 are driven by a gear 38 rearward of the screw 24 and a pinion 39 which receives power from a suitable source of supply, not shown, and meshes with the gear 38. By arranging the transfer conduit or trough 16 and the conduit 18 as described, the screw sections 24 and 25 may be universally connected outside the stoker proper without any added mechanism for such an arrangement.

In operation, the fuel received by the transfer conduit 16 is urged forwardly by the screw- 24 and then forwardly and upwardly along the bottom wall 30 of the nozzle 2'7. The fuel then passes through the mouth portion 40 of said nozzle on to the flights of the screw 25 at the rearmost portion 40a of said riser conduit 18, from there to be conveyed forwardly and upwardly onto the de-' fleeting plate 19 from which it is distributed over the fire by the action of the pressure fluid head 20.

Figure 2 illustrates a modified form of the invention shown in Figure 1. The shaft portion 29 of the screw 24 is provided with a bevel gear 41 which meshes with the bevel gear 42 on the shaft 43. A housing 44, formed as an integral part of the nozzle 27a, receives the gearing which is enclosed in said housing by the cover 45. The shaft 43 projects through the cover 45 and receives a jaw member 46 which is connected by a block 4'7 to a similar jaw member 48 of the shaft 33, said shaft being an extension of the screw 25. It will be apparent that the shaft as is in effect an extension of the shaft 33. Thus the screw sections 24 and 25 are universally jointed outside of the stoker proper in a manner which permits one screw to be operated at a higher speed than the other if found necessary and in which arrangement the initial angularity between the universally connected shafts may be greatly reduced, which results in the longer life of the universal joints. In all other respects the modified form is the same as the preferred form previously de scribed, the screw 24,- being driven by the gearing shown at the rear of the fuel transfer conduit in Figure 1.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that I have provided a stoker having a sectional screw conveyor in which one screw section transmits power directly to the other by a universal joint exterior of the stoker conduits, thereby permitting the passage for fuel between the stoker conduits to be unobstructed by screw joints.

I claim:

1. A stoker conveying system comprising in combination a riser conduit and a transfer conduit, the forward end of said transfer conduit terminating in a nozzle, said nozzle being offset from the rearward end of said riser conduit and flexibly associated therewith, a conveyor screw in said riser conduit having a shaft portion projecting through and beyond a wall thereof adjacent said nozzle, a screw in said transfer conduit having a shaft portion extending through and beyond a wall of said nozzle, and a flexible coupling disposed exteriorly of said conduits between the named walls thereof, the ends of said flexible coupling being operatively associated with the shaft portions projecting through the named walls.

2. A stoker conveying system comprising in combination a riser conduit and a fuel transfer conduit, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward portion of said transfer conduit terminating in a nozzle, said nozzle being offset from the rearward end of said riser conduit, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a conveyor screw in said riser conduit having a shaft portion projecting through and beyond the lower portion of said riser conduit, a conveyor screw in said transfer conduit, said screw being driven by said gearing and having an extended shaft portion projecting through and exteriorly of said nozzle, and a flexible coupling joining said screw shafts exteriorly of said conduits in the vicinity of the offset therebetween.

3. In combination with a locomotive having a firebox and a backhead with a firing opening therein, a tender for said locomotive provided with a fuel bin, a stoker comprising a fuel transfer conduit mounted beneath said fuel bin and a substantially straight riser conduit communicating with said firing opening, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward end of said transfer conduit terminating in an upwardly extending nozzle, the rearward end of said riser conduit being offset immediately beneath the forward end of said nozzle, and a conveyor screw in each of said conduits, said conveyor screws having their adjacent shaft portions extending exteriorly of said conduits and being flexibly connected at their adjacent ends in the vicinity of the offset between the flexibly related conduits.

4. In combination with a locomotive having a firebox and a backhead with a firing opening therein, a tender for said locomotive provided with a fuel bin, a stoker comprising a fuel transfer conduit mounted beneath said fuel bin and a substantially straight riser conduit communicating with said firing opening, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward end of said transfer conduit terminating in an upwardly extending nozzle, the rearward end of said riser conduit being offset immediately beneath the forward end of said nozzle, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a conveyor screw in said transfer conduit driven by the gearing rearward thereof, and a conveyor screw in said riser conduit, said conveyor screws having their adjacent shaft portions extending exteriorly of said conduits and being flexibly connected at their adjacent ends in the vicinity of the offset between the flexibly related conduits.

5. In combination with a locomotive having a firebox and a backhead with a firing opening therein, a tender for said locomotive provided with a fuel bin, a stoker comprising a fuel transfer conduit mounted beneath said fuel bin, the forward portion of said transfer conduit terminating in a forwardly and upwardly extending nozzle, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a riser conduit rigidly secured to said locomotive and arranged to discharge fuel through said firing opening, the rearward end of said riser conduit being offset immediately beneath the forward end of said transfer conduit nozzle, said conduits being flexibly related, a screw in said transfer conduit driven by said gearing and having a shaft portion thereof extending through and beyond the bottom wall of said nozzle to a point exterior thereof, a screw in said riser conduit, said screw having a shaft extending rearwardly through and beyond the lower end of said riser conduit to a point exterior thereof, and a flexible coupling joining said screw shafts exteriorly in the vicinity of the offset between the flexibly related conduits.

6. In combination with a locomotive having a firebox and a backhead with a firing opening therein, a tender for said locomotive provided with a fuel bin, a stoker comprising a fuel transfer conduit mounted beneath said fuel bin and a riser conduit communicating with said firing opening, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward end of said transfer conduit terminating in a nozzle, the rearward end of said riser conduit being offset from the forward end of said nozzle, and a conveyor screw in each of said conduits, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit for driving the screw therein, said conveyor screws having shaft portions extending exteriorly of said conduits and being flexibly connected at their adjacent ends exteriorly in the vicinity of the offset between said flexibly related conduits.

7. In combination with a locomotive having a firebox and a backhead with a firing opening therein, a tender for said locomotive provided with a fuel bin, a stoker comprising a fuel transfer conduit mounted beneath said fuel bin, a riser conduit rigidly secured to said locomotive and arranged to discharge fuel through said firing opening, said conduits being flexibly related, said riser conduit being declined rearwardly from said firing opening, the forward portion of said fuel transfer conduit terminating in a nozzle, said nozzle extending forwardly and upwardly and being in a vertically offset relation with the rearward portion of said riser conduit, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a screw in said transfer conduit driven by said gearing, said screw extending into said nozzle and having an extended shaft portion projecting exteriorly beyond the bottom wall thereof, a screw in said riser conduit, said screw having a shaft projecting exteriorly beyond the lower end of said riser conduit, and a flexible coupling joining said screw shafts exteriorly in the vicinity of the offset between the flexibly related conduits.

8. In a stoker conveying system comprising a riser conduit and a transfer conduit, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward end of said transfer conduit terminating in a nozzle disposed immediately above and extending into the rearward end of said riser conduit, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a conveyor screw in said riser conduit having a shaft portion projecting rearwardly through and beyond the lower end of said riser conduit to a point exterior thereof, a conveyor screw in said transfer conduit, said conveyor screw being driven by said gearing and having a shaft portion extending forwardly through and exteriorly of said nozzle, gearing connected with said transfer conduit screw shaft portion, and a flexible coupling joining said last named gearing with said riser conduit screw shaft portion exteriorly of said flexibly related conduits.

9. In a stoker conveying system comprising a fuel transfer conduit and a riser conduit, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward portion of said transfer conduit terminating in an up- Wardly and forwardly extending nozzle, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a screw in said riser conduit having a shaft portion projecting rearwardly through and beyond the lower end of said riser conduit, said shaft portion provided with a flexible joint member intermediate its ends, a screw in said transfer conduit driven by said gearing and having a shaft portion extending through and beyond the bottom wall of said nozzle to a point exterior thereof, a gear mounted on saidlast named shaft portion and a gear mounted on said first named shaft portion, said gears carried by said transfer conduit and being in engagement with each other to operatively connect said shaft portions exteriorly of said flexibly related conduits.

10. In a stoker conveying system comprising a fuel transfer conduit and a riser conduit, said conduits being flexibly related, the forward portion of said transfer conduit terminating in an upwardly and forwardly extending nozzle, gearing at the rear of said transfer conduit, a screw in said riser conduit having a shaft portion projecting rearwardly through and beyond the lower end of said riser conduit, said shaft portion provided with a flexible joint member intermediate its ends, a screw in said transfer conduit driven by said gearing and having a shaft portion extending through and beyond the bottom wall of said nozzle, a gear mounted on each of the adjacent ends of said shaft portions, said gears being in engage- CHARLES J. SURDYKOWSKI. 

